Offset cancellation for audio amplifier

ABSTRACT

An audio amplification circuit is provided having an amplifier that receives an input signal, an output, and a digital control input for receiving a control value in a number n of bits; a comparator having a first input that receives the amplifier&#39;s output signal image, a second input that receives a reference potential, and an output; and a thermometer counter having a selection input coupled to the comparator output, and an output delivering an n-bit digital value to the amplifier control input. The amplifier comprises a differential input stage having a first and a second differential branch, each traversed by a bias current, the current in the first branch being modifiable by n basic current sources which each deliver either a current identical for all current sources, or no current, as a function of one respective bit of the digital control value received at the control input.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a U.S. National Phase application submitted under 35U.S.C. §371 of Patent Cooperation Treaty application serial no.PCT/EP2010/057444, filed May 28, 2010, and entitled OFFSET CANCELLATIONFOR AUDIO AMPLIFIER, which application claims priority to French patentapplication serial no. FR 09 53598, filed May 29, 2009, and entitledOFFSET CANCELLATION FOR AUDIO AMPLIFIER.

Patent Cooperation Treaty application serial no. PCT/EP2010/057444,published as WO 2010/136578, and French patent application serial no. FR09 53598, are incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention relates in general to the amplification of audio signals,and in particular to offset cancellation for an audio amplifier.

The invention has applications, in particular, in the integratedcircuits equipping devices that have an audio signal reproductionfunction, such as mobile telephones, portable MP3 or MP4 players, etc.In such an application, the audio amplifier is designed to drive thespeaker or headset jack of the device.

BACKGROUND

When the audio amplifier is powered on, this produces unwanted noisewhich is called a “pop” by those skilled in the art. This pop isconsidered to be an audible defect to the user of the device. It isunpleasant to hear, particularly when listening through headphones orearphones.

FIG. 1 shows the evolution over time of the output voltage Vout(t) ofthe audio amplifier at power-on, in the absence of an input signal tothe amplifier. The pop arises from the generation of a voltage peak 1,which is called a glitch, and the presence of a non-zero voltage level 2corresponding to the offset voltage of the amplifier.

This offset voltage results from an imbalance between the two staticcurrents respectively established in each of the two branches of thedifferential pair that forms the input stage of the amplifier.

In practice, it is not uncommon to observe offset voltages of around ±10mV. A “pop” corresponding to a transient variation of 1 mV in the outputcan be heard by a user.

The offset voltage also causes static power consumption, whichcorresponds to the product of the offset voltage and the load impedance.In the applications envisaged here, the device is generallybattery-powered, and reducing the static power consumption is desirable.

Techniques exist for decreasing the unwanted noise in the audio signalreproduced for the user, arising from the offset voltage of the audioamplifier. In principle, the techniques previously considered hereconsist of observing the output voltage from the amplifier in theabsence of an input signal, and controlling an offset cancellation meansinternal to the amplifier.

Such a technique is present in the article in the IEEE Journal OfSolid-State Circuits, Vol. 29, No. 5, May 1994, entitled “An Automaticoffset compensation scheme with Ping-Pong control for CMOS operationalamplifier”. However, the solution in this article does not apply to theaudio applications envisaged, because of the lack of linearity in theoffset cancellation that it provides.

SUMMARY

There is therefore a need for a solution that eliminates, or at leastattenuates, the offset voltage of an audio amplifier.

For this purpose, an audio amplifier circuit is proposed comprising anamplifier having an input for receiving an input signal, an output, anda digital control input for receiving a control value in a number n ofbits; a comparator having a first input coupled to the output of theamplifier in order to receive an image of the output signal from theamplifier, a second input receiving a reference potential, and anoutput; and a thermometer counter, having a selection input coupled tothe output of the comparator, and an output delivering an n-bit digitalvalue (COR) which is provided to the control input of the amplifier.

Advantageously, the amplifier comprises a differential input stagehaving a first and a second differential branch each traversed by a biascurrent, with the current in the first branch being modifiable by nbasic current sources which each deliver either a basic current which isidentical for all basic current sources, or no current, depending on thebinary value of one of the respective bits of the digital control valuereceived at the control input.

This allows obtaining a correction of the offset of the audio amplifierwhich is monotonic and linear, in the sense that the decrease in theoffset voltage decreases with a constant slope, in rhythm with a clocksignal which defines the timing of the thermometer counter.

When the amplifier is a class AB amplifier, which provides goodamplification efficiency, the reference potential of the comparator isthe ground potential.

The amplifier can comprise a current source acting on the second branchof the differential stage in order to unbalance the respective currentsin the first and second branches of the differential stage, for a zeroinput signal and for a control value corresponding to an absence ofchange in the bias current in the first branch of the differentialstage.

Preferably, the current source acting on the second branch of thedifferential stage in order to unbalance the respective currents in thefirst and second branches of the differential stage is configured todeliver a current substantially equal to (n×Io)/2, where Io is the valueof the basic current delivered by each of the basic current sourceswhich allow modifying the current in the first branch of thedifferential stage.

In this manner, the sign of the amplifier offset can be forced to a signwhich is still the same (positive or negative), which simplifies itscorrection. In other words, one knows in which direction the biascurrents need to be rebalanced, because this is still the same. Also,one knows that it is possible to correct the offset during a count cycleof the thermometer counter.

In order to eliminate effects of any offset in the comparator, thecomparator is an automatic zero-adjustment comparator.

Preferably, the comparator comprises a first stage which is adifferential stage with automatic zero adjustment, followed by a secondstage which does not have automatic zero adjustment, and an analoglatch.

The second stage contributes to increasing the sensitivity, by providingadditional gain. Its offset, if any, is divided by the gain of the firststage in the output signal from the comparator, and this is why it isnot essential to correct it. The comparator structure is then simpler.

In an embodiment suitable for amplification of an audio signal, thecounter frequency is equal to about 32 kHz, and n is equal to 94.

The invention also concerns an audio amplification method using anamplifier having an input for receiving an input signal, an output, anda digital control input for receiving a control value in a number n ofbits, comprising the steps of comparing an image of the output signalfrom the amplifier with a reference potential; and generating an n-bitdigital value that is provided to the control input of the amplifier,with a thermometer counter having a selection input coupled to thecomparator output.

The current is modified in a first branch of a differential input stageof the amplifier having said first branch and a second differentialbranch each traversed by a bias current, by n basic current sourceswhich each deliver either a basic current which is identical for allbasic current sources, or no current, as a function of the binary valueof one of the respective bits of the digital control value received atthe control input.

The invention further concerns a device comprising an audio signalsource and an amplification circuit as defined above, for amplificationof the audio signal.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other features and advantages of the invention will be apparent fromreading the following description. This description is purelyillustrative and is to be read in light of the attached drawings, inwhich:

FIG. 1, already discussed, shows a graph over time of the output voltagefrom an audio amplifier without glitch or offset correction, when theamplifier is powered on;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating the principle of offsetcancellation according to embodiments of the invention;

FIG. 3 represents the transition diagram of a thermometer counter withan 8-bit output;

FIG. 4 is a detailed diagram of one embodiment of the audio amplifierwith its internal offset correction means;

FIGS. 5 a-5 c are diagrams illustrating the ranges of variation in theoffset voltage of the audio amplifier, and its evolution within theseranges;

FIG. 6 is a graph over time of the output voltage at power-on from anaudio amplifier with offset correction according to embodiments of theinvention;

FIG. 7 illustrates the schematic diagram of an auto-zero comparator usedin embodiments of the invention;

FIGS. 8 a to 8 i show timing charts for the clock signals, controlsignals, and voltages of the amplification circuit;

FIG. 9 is a diagram of steps of a method that implements theamplification circuit; and

FIG. 10 is a simplified diagram of a device incorporating theamplification circuit.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIG. 2 schematically represents an example of an audio amplificationcircuit incorporating offset cancellation according to the principleused by embodiments of the invention.

The audio amplification circuit comprises an input 11 for receiving anaudio input signal Vin to be amplified. It also comprises an output 12for delivering an audio output signal Vout corresponding to theamplified signal Vin.

The input signal is typically a differential voltage defined by thedifference between two components: V+ and V−.

The signal Vout is a voltage suitable for driving a sound reproductiondevice such as a speaker or headset. Typically, the output 12 drives aspeaker of the device in which the audio amplification circuit is used,or a jack of this device to which a headset, earphones, or an externalspeaker can be connected.

In the present description, and unless specifically indicated otherwise,all the voltages mentioned are relative to a reference potential Vss.This can be a ground potential. It is also understood that unlessotherwise stated, the phenomena described here occur before an inputsignal Vin is applied to the input 11. In other words, V+=V−.

The amplification circuit comprises an amplifier 10, typically a classAB amplifier. This is a differential amplifier, such as an operationalamplifier. Such an amplifier comprises an input stage with adifferential pair of transistors. Here, the transistors are MOStransistors. The device is for example realized using CMOS technology(“Complementary MOS”). Details of an example of the input stage of theamplifier 10 will be given below with reference to FIG. 4.

Typically, the operating point of the amplifier 10 is in the middle ofthe range of available voltages, meaning for example at a voltage equalto Vdd−Vss)/2 for an audio amplifier supplied a voltage between apositive power supply voltage Vdd and said potential Vss. This obtainsthe maximum dynamic range for amplification of the input signal Vin. Forexample, the amplifier has an input stage with a differential structure,which amplifies the difference between the V+ and V− components of theinput signal Vin. The operating point of the amplifier 10 is obtained byimposing a static current in each of the two branches of thedifferential pair that constitutes its input stage, with these twocurrents in principle needing to have the same value so that thedifferential pair is balanced and the amplifier has no offset.

An offset voltage of the amplifier 10 arises from imbalance between thetwo static currents mentioned above, or bias currents. Such an imbalanceis inherent to the creation of an amplifier on silicon. It results fromvariations in the characteristics of components, i.e. MOS transistors,which are the basic elements of an amplifier created on silicon.

The amplifier 10 comprises internal offset corrections means forcorrecting the imbalance between the bias currents of the differentialpair. These means are controlled from outside the amplifier, via aninput 13, by an offset cancellation means, which here comprises acomparator 20 and a thermometer code generator 30.

The comparator 20 comprises two inputs and one output. The first input(designated by a “+” sign in FIG. 2) is coupled to the output 12 of theamplification circuit, in order to receive an image of the output signalVout, meaning the voltage Vout(t). The second input (denoted by the “−”sign in FIG. 2) receives a reference voltage. When the amplifier 10 is aclass AB amplifier, whose output voltage in common mode istheoretically, i.e. without offset, equal to zero, this referencevoltage is the zero voltage. In this case, the “−” input is for examplecoupled to the ground of the circuit. In other words, in this case, theoffset of the amplifier 10 is determined by comparing its output voltageVout(t) to zero.

The accuracy of this comparison is affected by various parameters,including the possible existence of an offset in the comparator 20. Thisis why, in order to increase this accuracy, an automatic zero-adjustmentcomparator is preferably used, also called an auto-zero comparator. Theprinciple of such a comparator and an advantageous embodiment will bedescribed below with reference to FIG. 7.

Still with reference to FIG. 2, the output from the amplifier 20delivers a signal COMP which drives a validation input or selectioninput IN of the generator 30. The generator can, for example, comprise amodulo-n counter, where n is an integer greater than one. This counterhas an n-bit digital output. It generates and outputs a correctionsignal COR which corresponds to an n-bit thermometer code. For example,it can be a Johnson counter or a derivative of such a counter. It isclocked by a clock signal Φ2 received at a clock input, which will bediscussed in more detail below.

The operation of the counter 30 can be summarized by its transitiondiagram, of which an example is represented in FIG. 3, with n=8. Such adiagram represents all the output values from the counter for a completecounter cycle.

As can be seen in this example, the characteristic of a thermometercounter is that, starting from an initial value in which all bits are 0,a bit changes from 0 to 1 at each transition, while the other bits donot change value. In the example represented, the n bits successivelychange to 1 starting with the most significant bit (MSB) and ending withthe least significant bit (LSB). The reverse is also possible, meaningstarting with the LSB and ending with the MSB. The counter is designedin such a way that it is reset to zero when the circuit is powered on.In this state, all the bits of the output value COR are at the logicalvalue of 0. A person skilled in the art knows how to design a counterrealizing these transitions.

Returning to FIG. 2, the output signal COR from the thermometer codegenerator 30 is provided to the offset correction input 13 of theamplifier 10. It constitutes an offset cancellation signal, which is ann-bit digital signal.

In the context of the invention, the transitions of the counter arecontrolled at the pace of the clock signal described above, while theoutput signal from the comparator is in a logical stage indicating thatthe output voltage Vout(t) from the amplifier 10 is not zero. Forexample, this directly concerns the activation state of the counter viaits input IN, for example the high logical state.

The entire system is calibrated such that this condition (Vout(t)=0)must be met by one of the n output values of the counter 30, as will nowbe explained.

FIG. 4 details an exemplary embodiment of the amplifier 10. It comprisesan input stage 41, an output stage 42, and a current source network 43.

The input stage 41 comprises a differential pair of MOS transistors.These are for example two identical PMOS transistors, respectively MP1and MP2, arranged as a differential pair. The transistor MP1 receivesthe positive component V+ of the input signal Vin, and the transistorMP2 receives its negative component V−. The sources of MP1 and MP2 areconnected together, through a current source, to a high supply terminalbrought to the voltage potential Vdd. In an example considered here, thepositive supply voltage Vdd is equal to about 2 V. The current sourcedelivers a bias current Ip. For example, the source is realized by aPMOS transistor whose substrate electrode is brought to the voltage Vddand whose control gate receives a constant bias voltage, whose amplitudedetermines the value of the current Ip.

The drain of the transistor MP1 is connected to a terminal brought tothe ground potential Vss, through an NMOS transistor. Similarly, thedrain of the transistor MP2 is connected to the ground terminal throughanother NMOS transistor, identical to the previous one. These twotransistors, respectively MN1 and MN2, are therefore each traversed by a“static balancing current”. Static balancing current is understood tomean a current established in the absence of a signal Vin to beamplified, meaning when Vin(t)=0, i.e. when V+=V−. These transistors MN1and MN2 are part of the output stage 42.

This ideal situation, which corresponds to a perfect balance between thetwo branches of the differential pair respectively comprising thetransistors MP1 and MN1 and the transistors MP2 and MN2, is nevercompletely achieved in practice. This is due to imperfections when thesetransistors are created on silicon. An imbalance causes an offsetvoltage at the amplifier output, meaning that the output voltage Vout(t)is not equal to zero when the voltage Vin(t) is zero.

The output stage 42 of the amplifier 10 has a “folded cascode”structure. More particularly, it comprises a pair of PMOS transistorswhose sources are connected to the high supply terminal Vdd, and whichare arranged with current minoring: their control gates are connectedtogether and one of them has its control gate connected to its drain.The output signal Vout from the amplifier 10 is taken from the drain ofthe other transistor. The drains of these two PMOS transistors arecoupled to the ground terminal Vss, each through two cascoded NMOStransistors. The control gates of the NMOS transistors of each cascodestage receive the same bias voltage, meaning a voltage Vn1 for the lowerstage comprising MN1 and MN2 (which is next to Vss) and a voltage Vn2for the upper stage (the one which is next to Vdd and the PMOStransistors). The pair of middle points, i.e. between the two cascodestages of the stage 42, is thus connected to the pair of output nodes ofthe differential input stage 41, meaning to the drain of transistors MP1and MP2, respectively. This structure of the output stage 42 allows highaccuracy in recopying output currents from the differential pair of theinput stage 41, even for a low supply voltage Vdd. High precision istherefore obtained in the value of the output signal Vout. In addition,this structure of the stage 42 limits power consumption in stable mode,and is little affected by variations in component temperatures.

The audio amplifier also comprises a matrix of controlled currentsources 43. More precisely, the matrix 43 comprises n controlledsources, respectively SC1 to SCn. The control input of this matrixcorresponds to the offset correction input 13 of the audio amplifier. Itreceives the n-bit digital value COR produced by the counter 30, whichis also shown in FIG. 4.

A decoding logic (not represented) ensures that each of the currentsources SC1 to SCn is controlled by one of the bits of the offsetcorrection signal COR delivered by the counter 30. For example, thesource SC1 is controlled by the most significant bit, and the source SCnis controlled by the least significant bit, and so on for the bits ofintermediate rank between the MSB and the LSB. Thus, a source SC<i>delivers current when the bit of rank i in the offset correction signalis 1, while it is off (delivering no current) when this bit is 0.

The value of the current delivered by each of the sources SC1, SC2, . .. , SCn, is respectively denoted as I1, I2, . . . , In. In order toobtain a linear offset correction, all these currents are equal to asame value Io. In other words, I1=I2= . . . =In=Io. This is obtained byrealizing the matrix 43 in the form of a matrix of “matched”transistors. Such transistors are realized during the same siliconintegration steps and are connected so as to be current mirroring.

The sources of each of the n transistors SC1 to SCn are connected to thesource of the transistor MN2, and therefore to the ground Vss. Theirdrains are connected to the drain of the transistor MN2. In other words,the sources SC1 to SCn are connected in parallel with the transistor MN2such that their current, respectively I1 to In, discharges the outputnode of the differential stage 41 which corresponds to the drain of thetransistor MN2.

Each time one more source is turned on, this node is discharged by asupplemental current Io. This discharge allows correcting the imbalancebetween the currents flowing in each of the branches of thisdifferential pair. The value of the current Io is substantially lessthan Ip/2, for example 100 times smaller. In fact, Io is chosen to beable to correct the difference between the theoretical value of Ip/2 andits actual observed value, considering the variations in thecharacteristics of the components, and does this in at most n correctionsteps during each of which one more current source is turned on amongthe n sources SC1 to SCn.

In an example, where an offset of ±15 mV is to be corrected, Io=100 nAand n=94 are chosen. These values for Io and n allow covering the entirerange of offset voltages, between −15 mV and +15 mV.

In order to guarantee that the offset correction is monotonic, a currentsource 44 is preferably added between the other output node of thedifferential input stage 41, meaning the drain of the transistor MN1,and the ground terminal Vss. This current source is designed to delivera current equal to about n×i0/2. These values give an offset voltage of+15 mV at the output. In this manner one is certain to have a positiveoutput voltage, of between 0 and +30 mV, for an imbalance between thetwo branches of the differential input stage 41 which in principle givesan offset of ±15 mV. This interval is symbolized by the dottedhorizontal lines in FIG. 5 b.

Thus, when the offset voltage appears at power-on of the audioamplification circuit, it is always located at a positive value ofbetween 0 and 30 mV, and it decreases in successive steps each time acurrent source among the sources SC1 to SCn is turned on. This resultsin a stair-step evolution of the voltage Vout(t) which is decreasing andmonotonic, as is visible in FIG. 5 c. More particularly, the voltageVout (t) decreases in a stair-step manner, from an initial value ofbetween 0 and 30 mV when the circuit is powered on, down to 0. Theheight of each stair corresponds to the contribution of the current i0which is added in order to discharge the drain of the transistor MN1,each time a current source among the sources SC1 to SCn is turned on.The width of each stair corresponds to the period T of the clock signal.

To summarize, with reference to the graph in FIG. 6 in comparison to theone in FIG. 1, the voltage segment denoted by the reference 2 in FIG. 1is replaced in the signal Vout(t) by a decreasing slope 3 which ends at0 at the end of a period of time corresponding to n×T.

The monotonic characteristic of the decrease in the offset voltageVout(t) to 0, starting from the initial value when the audio amplifieris powered on, is advantageous because it improves the precision of theoffset correction. In fact, if the current source matrix 43 weredirectly controlled by a decoding of a binary value corresponding to ameasurement of the offset at given moments, the more or less randomturning on and off of the various current sources of the matrix couldgive rise to alternating charges and discharges of the nodecorresponding to the drain of the transistor MN1. For example, if fromone period of the clock signal to the next, the value changes from anumber corresponding to eight units (the number 1000 in binary) to anumber corresponding to seven units (the number 0111 in binary), thereis nothing to guarantee that the sum of the currents generated by thethree sources which are turned on by this transition (corresponding tothe three least significant bits) is less than the current of the sourcewhich is turned off (corresponding to the most significant bit). Infact, with the uncertainties inherent in realizing components onsilicon, this cannot be guaranteed. With a controlled current sourcematrix as described with reference to FIG. 4, given that a compensationcurrent is added at each step to the sum of the currents which werealready added in the previous step, such a decrease in the compensationcurrent cannot occur.

As has been said, the comparator 20 is preferably an auto-zerocomparator. Such a comparator has the advantage of being without its ownoffset voltage with regard to the comparison between the two voltagelevels received as input. Its principle is illustrated schematically inFIG. 7.

In FIG. 7, the signal Vout(t) to be compared is provided to the “−”input of a comparator stage 61, through a switch controlled by a signalΦ2 and a capacitor. The output from the stage 61 is looped to this inputthrough a second switch controlled by a signal Φ1. The other input, the“+” input of the stage 61, is connected to the reference voltage towhich the voltage Vout(t) is compared, meaning the zero voltage of theground potential Vss in the example. Lastly, a third switch controlledby the same signal Φ1 allows coupling the plate of the capacitor whichis opposite the “−” input, to the other input “+”.

The operation of the comparator is as follows. In a first phase, theswitches controlled by the signal Φ1 are closed (for example in the highlogic state) and the switch controlled by the signal Φ2 is open (thesignal Φ2 being for example in the low state). The amplifier 61 is thenarranged in an amplifier follower configuration. In other words, theoutput voltage Vcomp(t) is stored in the capacitor. As the signalVout(t) is not applied to the input, this voltage corresponds only tothe offset voltage of the amplifier 61. In a second phase, it is thereverse: the switch controlled by Φ2 is closed and those controlled byΦ1 are open. The amplifier is then in the comparator configuration. Thevoltage which is compared to the zero voltage is then the voltageVout(t) increased by the voltage UC stored in the comparator, meaningthe offset voltage of the amplifier. Thus, the voltage Vcomp(t) outputfrom the comparator 61 during this second phase corresponds to an actualcomparison of the signal Vout(t) with the zero voltage. One understandsby this that the offset voltage of the amplifier 61 is eliminated fromthis comparison.

An exemplary embodiment of the comparator 20 will now be discussed withreference to FIGS. 7 and 8. In order to increase the sensitivity, onewants to increase the gain of the comparator. For this purpose, theamplifier 61 is followed by a second amplification stage 62. Again thiscan be an amplifier of a differential structure. In order to simplifythe architecture of the circuit, it can be implemented such that nospecial measures are taken to eliminate the offset of this amplificationstage. Even so, the contribution of this offset is reduced by a factor Grelative to that of the first stage 61, where G is the gain of the stage61. In other words, it is primarily the offset of the first stage 61which influences the results of the comparison, which is why that stagebenefits from offset compensation according to the principle of theauto-zero comparator described above.

The voltage Vcomp(t) which corresponds to the difference between thesignal Vout(t) and the zero voltage, after amplification by the stages61 and 62, drives the input of an output latch 63. This can be an analoglatch. This latch comprises an output Q and an input IN, which can be adifferential input when the output from the amplifier 62 is adifferential output. In one embodiment, the latch 63 is additionallyequipped with a reset input. Advantageously, this reset input receives aclock signal nCLK which corresponds to the inverse logic of theabove-mentioned clock signal CLK. At each rising edge of the signalnCLK, the output Q of the latch 63 is reset, no matter what the inputsignal IN. In other words, the latch 63 is maintained in a reset statefor half of the time, corresponding to the half-periods during which thesignal nCLK is in the high state.

The sequence of the various signals which clock the audio amplifieroperation will now be explained, with reference to the diagrams in FIGS.8 a to 8 i.

FIG. 8A shows the clock signal CLK. This is a periodic square-wavesignal, with a frequency for example of 32 kHz in the audio applicationsconsidered. From this signal, a second clock signal CLK2 is generated,by a means not represented. This signal CLK2 corresponds to the signalCLK but slightly delayed. In the example, the delay between these twoclock signals is equal to about 25 ns.

The rising edges of the signal CLK2 allow generating the control signalsΦ1 and Φ2 for the switches which control the operation of the comparator20 in the first phase or the second phase which were discussed abovewith reference to the diagram in FIG. 7. These signals are at the samefrequency as the signal CLK and the signal CLK2. They are in phaseopposition, and do not overlap. This means that they are notsimultaneously in the high state.

As was already stated above, the counter 30 is activated by the risingedges of the signal Φ2. As long as the output voltage Vout(t) from theamplifier 10, which corresponds to the offset of this amplifier in theabsence of a signal VIN to be amplified, is not zero, the output signalCOMP from the comparator 20 is in the high state when this produces arising edge of the signal Φ2. As a result the counter 30 increments,i.e., changes state as shown in the state diagram described withreference to FIG. 3. As a result, one more bit in the value output fromthe counter passes from 0 to 1. One more current source from among thesources of the matrix 43 (FIG. 4) is therefore turned on. Thisphenomenon is illustrated in FIGS. 8 e and 8 f for two sourcesdelivering the respective currents I<i> and I<i+1>, for two consecutiverising edges of the signal Φ2. The effect this produces on the outputvoltage Vout(t) from the amplifier 10 is illustrated by FIG. 8 g. As onecan see, each time a voltage source is turned on, the voltage Vout(t)decreases by a step corresponding to the value Io of the currentdelivered by this source.

FIG. 8 h illustrates the appearance of the clock signal nCLK which isthe logical inverse of the signal CLK. Remember that when this signal isin the logical high state, the latch 63 of the comparator 20 is in thereset state.

Lastly, FIG. 8 i does not show a signal that can be found in theoperation of the circuit, but illustrates time windows during which thesignal COMP that is output from the comparator 20 can be fixed, bysampling the voltage Vcomp(t) with the aid of the latch 63. It cannot bewithin the first phase of operation of the input stage 61 during whichthis stage is in voltage follower mode, and the latch 63 must not be inthe reset state. In other words, the signal Φ1 must be in the low stateas must the signal CLK.

FIG. 9 schematically represents the steps of a method for implementingan amplification circuit. These are steps carried out in each period ofthe clock signal. The steps correspond to transitions of the signalswhich were discussed above with reference to FIGS. 8 a-8 h. Althoughthey are represented sequentially for clarity in the discussion, inactuality these steps sometimes overlap each other. The order of theirpresentation in FIG. 9 virtually corresponds, however, to the order inwhich these steps are performed. First, the counter 30 is reset in astep 91. For example, this reset can be caused by powering on thecircuit. For this purpose, a Power-on-Reset (POR) unit can activate areset input for the counter 30. The counter is then in the initial stateshown at the top of FIG. 3, which corresponds to the value 000 . . . 0of the n-bit signal COR.

Then, during each period of the clock signal, the steps 92 to 96 arecarried out.

First, the offset of the comparator 20 is compensated for by placing itsuccessively in the first operating phase then in the second operatingphase. This occurs on the rising edges of the respective signals Φ1 andΦ2. This corresponds to the step denoted by 92.

In a step 93, the reset command for the latch 63 of the comparator issent. This takes place in a step 93, on the falling edge of the signalnCLK.

In a step 94, the comparison is then made between the output voltageVout(t) and the zero voltage. This occurs as soon as the signal nCLK isreset to the low state, which occurs while the comparator is in thesecond phase (signal Φ1 in the low state and signal Φ2 in the highstate).

In the step 95, an offset correction of the amplifier 10 is made whennecessary. This occurs by adding a current source from the matrix 43,via the change to 1 of an additional bit in the signal COR. This occurson a rising edge of the signal Φ2.

Then, in a step 96, the latch 63 is reset to zero, which occurs on thenext rising edge of the signal nCLK.

The steps 92 to 96 are then repeated. As was already stated above, thesystem is calibrated so that the number of repetitions of these steps isautomatically less than or equal to n. In other words, the offsetcancellation for the amplifier takes a period of time which is at mostequal to n times the period of the clock signal. In one example, n=94and the clock frequency is equal to 32 kHz. The offset cancellationtherefore takes less than 3 ms.

The block diagram in FIG. 10 shows the elements of a deviceincorporating an audio amplifier as presented above. Such a device canbe a mobile telephone or any other telephone, or any other device forcommunication.

The device 100 comprises a control unit 101 such as a processor (CPU),and a communication unit 102 for sending and receiving information fromthe outside, in particular by modulating a radio frequency carrier. Italso comprises a memory 103 which can store information in digital form,for example a piece of music. The processor 101 communicates with theunit 102 and the memory 103 via a communication bus 104. Each of theseelements is powered by the supply voltage Vdd delivered by a battery 106through a control switch 107.

At power-on, this switch 107 is closed. The processor 101 generates anaudio signal Vin to be amplified, either from data received via the unit102, or from data read from the memory 103. To amplify this signal Vin,the device 100 comprises an audio amplifier 105 whose embodiments havebeen described above. This amplifier is also powered by the voltage Vddsupplied to it through the switch 107 once power is turned on.

The output signal Vout generated by the amp 105 drives a speaker 109,which can be internal to the circuit 100 or external. Additionally oralternatively, it can also drive a headset jack 108 of the device 100,to allow the user to listen to audio using a headset or earphones.

The invention has been described above with reference to embodiments.Any technically conceivable variation falls within the context of thepresent patent application.

The invention claimed is:
 1. An audio amplification circuit comprising:an amplifier having an input for receiving an input signal (Vin), anoutput, and a digital control input for receiving an n-bit thermometercode, where n is an integer greater than 1; a comparator having a firstinput coupled to the output of the amplifier in order to receive animage of a signal output from the amplifier, a second input receiving areference potential, and an output; a thermometer counter, having aselection input coupled to the output of the comparator, and an outputconfigured to deliver the n-bit thermometer code to the digital controlinput of the amplifier, the thermometer counter configured to start froman initial value in which all n-bits are a first binary value then ateach count transition a bit changes from the first binary value to asecond binary value, while all the other bits of the n-bits do notchange value; and wherein the amplifier comprises a differential inputstage having a first and a second differential branch each traversed bya bias current, with the current in the first branch being modifiable byn basic current sources, which each deliver either a basic current thatis identical for all basic current sources, or no current, as a functionof the binary value of one of the respective n-bits of the n-bitthermometer code received at the digital control input.
 2. A circuitaccording to claim 1, wherein the amplifier is a class AB amplifier, andwherein the reference potential of the comparator is the groundpotential.
 3. A circuit according to claim 1, wherein the amplifieradditionally comprises a current source acting on the seconddifferential branch of the differential input stage in order tounbalance the respective currents in the first and second differentialbranches of the differential input stage, for a zero input signal andfor the n-bit thermometer code corresponding to an absence of change inthe bias current in the first differential branch of the differentialstage.
 4. A circuit according to claim 3, wherein the current sourceacting on the second differential branch of the differential input stagein order to unbalance the respective currents in the first and seconddifferential branches of the differential input stage is configured todeliver a current substantially equal to (n×Io)/2, where Io is the valueof the basic current delivered by each of the basic current sourceswhich allow modifying the current in the first differential branch ofthe differential input stage.
 5. A circuit according to claim 1, whereinthe comparator is an automatic zero-adjustment comparator.
 6. A circuitaccording to claim 5, wherein the comparator comprises a first stagewhich is a differential stage with automatic zero adjustment, followedby a second stage which does not have automatic zero adjustment, and ananalog latch.
 7. A circuit according to claim 1, wherein the thermometercounter is configured to receive a clock signal input and wherein theclock signal input comprises a counter frequency equal to about 32 kHzand n is equal to
 94. 8. An audio amplification method using anamplifier having an input for receiving an input signal, an output, anda digital control input for receiving a n-bit thermometer code, where nis an integer greater than 1, the method comprising: comparing, by acomparator, an image of the output signal from the amplifier with areference potential; generating, by a thermometer counter having aselection input coupled to an output of the comparator, the n-bitthermometer code and providing the n-bit thermometer code to the digitalcontrol input of the amplifier; and modifying a current in a firstbranch of a differential input stage of the amplifier by n basic currentsources which each deliver either a basic current which is identical forall basic current sources, or no current, as a function of the binaryvalue of each one of the respective n-bits of the n-bit thermometer codereceived at the digital control input; wherein the amplifier comprisesthe first branch and a second branch each being configured to betraversed by a bias current.
 9. A method according to claim 8, wherein,the amplifier is a class AB amplifier and the reference potential of thecomparator is the ground potential.
 10. A method according to claim 8,wherein for a zero input signal and for the n-bit thermometer codecorresponding to an absence of change in the bias current in the firstbranch of the differential input stage, the respective currents in thefirst and second branches of the differential stage are unbalanced byusing a current source acting on the second branch of the differentialinput stage.
 11. A method according to claim 10, wherein the currentsource acting on the second branch of the differential stage in order tounbalance the respective currents in the first and second branches ofthe differential stage delivers a current substantially equal to(n×Io)/2, where Io is the value of the basic current delivered by eachof the basic current sources.
 12. A method according claim 8, wherein anautomatic zero-adjustment comparator is used for comparing an image ofthe output signal of the amplifier with the reference potential.
 13. Amethod according to claim 12, wherein the comparator comprises a firstamplification stage, which is a differential stage with automatic zeroadjustment, followed by a second amplification stage which does not haveautomatic zero adjustment, and an analog latch.
 14. A method accordingto claim 8, wherein the counter frequency of the thermometer counter isequal to about 32 kHz and n is equal to
 94. 15. An electronic devicecomprising an audio signal source, and an amplifier according to claim 1adapted to amplify the audio signal.
 16. An audio amplification circuitcomprising: an amplifier having an input for receiving an input signal(Vin), an output, and a digital control input for receiving a controlvalue that comprises an n-bit digital value, where n is an integergreater than 1; a comparator having a first input coupled to the outputof the amplifier in order to receive an image of a signal output fromthe amplifier, a second input receiving a reference potential, and anoutput; a thermometer counter, having a selection input coupled to theoutput of the comparator, and an output configured to deliver thecontrol value to the digital control input of the amplifier; and whereinthe amplifier comprises a differential input stage having a first and asecond differential branch each traversed by a bias current, with thecurrent in the first branch being modifiable by n basic current sources,which each deliver either a basic current that is identical for allbasic current sources, or no current, as a function of the binary valueof one of the respective n-bits of the control value received at thedigital control input, and wherein the amplifier additionally comprisesa current source acting on the second differential branch of thedifferential input in order to unbalance the respective currents in thefirst and second differential branches of the differential input stagefor a zero input signal and for a control value corresponding to anabsence of change in the bias current of the first differential branchof the differential input stage.
 17. An audio amplification method usingan amplifier having an input for receiving an input signal, an output,and a digital control input for receiving a control value comprising ann-bit digital value, where n is an integer greater than 1, the methodcomprising: comparing, by a comparator, an image of the output signalfrom the amplifier with a reference potential; generating the n-bitdigital value that is provided as the control value to the digitalcontrol input of the amplifier, with a thermometer counter having aselection input coupled to an output of the comparator; modifying acurrent in a first branch of a differential input stage of the amplifierby n basic current sources which each deliver either a basic currentwhich is identical for all basic current sources, or no current, as afunction of the binary value of each one of the respective n-bits of thecontrol value received at the digital control input; wherein theamplifier comprises the first branch and a second branch each beingconfigured to be traversed by a bias current; and wherein for a zeroinput signal and for a control value corresponding to an absence ofchange in the bias current in the first branch of the differential inputstage, the respective currents in the first and second branches of thedifferential input stage are unbalanced by using a current source actingon the second branch of the differential input stage.
 18. An audioamplification circuit comprising: an amplifier having an input forreceiving an input signal (Vin), an output, and a digital control inputfor receiving a control value that comprises an n-bit digital value,where n is an integer greater than 1; a comparator having a first inputcoupled to the output of the amplifier in order to receive an image of asignal output from the amplifier, a second input receiving a referencepotential, and an output, wherein the comparator is an automaticzero-adjustment comparator comprising a first differential stage havingautomatic zero-adjustment followed by a second stage does not haveautomatic zero-adjustment, and an analog latch; a thermometer counter,having a selection input coupled to the output of the comparator, and anoutput configured to deliver the control value to the digital controlinput of the amplifier; and wherein the amplifier comprises adifferential input stage having a first and a second differential brancheach traversed by a bias current, with the current in the first branchbeing modifiable by n basic current sources, which each deliver either abasic current that is identical for all basic current sources, or nocurrent, as a function of the binary value of one of the respectiven-bits of the control value received at the digital control input. 19.An audio amplification method using an amplifier having an input forreceiving an input signal, an output, and a digital control input forreceiving a control value comprising an n-bit digital value, where n isan integer greater than 1, the method comprising: comparing, by acomparator, an image of the output signal from the amplifier with areference potential, wherein the comparator comprises a firstamplification stage, which is a differential stage with automatic zeroadjustment, followed by a second amplification stage which does not haveautomatic zero adjustment, and an analog latch; generating the n-bitdigital value that is provided as the control value to the digitalcontrol input of the amplifier, with a thermometer counter having aselection input coupled to an output of the comparator; and modifying acurrent in a first branch of a differential input stage of the amplifierby n basic current sources which each deliver either a basic currentwhich is identical for all basic current sources, or no current, as afunction of the binary value of each one of the respective n-bits of thecontrol value received at the digital control input; wherein theamplifier comprises the first branch and a second branch each beingconfigured to be traversed by a bias current.